{"id":1760,"date":"2026-03-30T15:25:57","date_gmt":"2026-03-30T06:25:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/?p=1760"},"modified":"2026-03-30T15:27:55","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T06:27:55","slug":"%f0%9f%9a%b2-bicycle-traffic-rules-what-you-need-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/%f0%9f%9a%b2-bicycle-traffic-rules-what-you-need-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"\ud83d\udeb2 Bicycle Traffic Rules: What You Need to Know"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1006\" height=\"544\" src=\"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1763\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/2.jpg 1006w, https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/2-300x162.jpg 300w, https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/2-768x415.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1006px) 100vw, 1006px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Many people aren\u2019t sure about bicycle rules\u2014like whether it\u2019s okay to ride on the sidewalk or which traffic lights to follow. Here\u2019s a clear and simple guide to help you ride safely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>\ud83d\udeb6 Can you ride on the sidewalk?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In principle, bicycles should ride on the <strong>road<\/strong>, but you may use the sidewalk in the following cases:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>1\u3000<\/strong><strong> When sidewalk riding is allowed<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>When signs indicate bicycles are permitted<\/li><li>When it is unavoidable for safety reasons, such as:<ul><li>Road construction<\/li><li>Parked cars blocking the road<\/li><li>Heavy traffic or narrow roads<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Note: If a police officer instructs you not to use the sidewalk, you must follow that instruction.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>2<\/strong><strong> Rules for riding on the sidewalk<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Ride on the <strong>roadside (closer to the road)<\/strong><\/li><li>Ride <strong>slowly<\/strong><\/li><li><strong>Stop if necessary<\/strong> to avoid blocking pedestrians<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>\ud83d\udc49 Violation: Fine of <strong>3,000 yen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>3<\/strong><strong>\ud83d\udea6 Which traffic lights should you follow?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Riding on the road \u2192 follow <strong>vehicle traffic lights<\/strong><\/li><li>Riding on the sidewalk \u2192 follow <strong>pedestrian lights<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>However, if there is a sign saying<br><strong>\u201cPedestrians and Bicycles Only\u201d<\/strong>,<br>you must follow the <strong>pedestrian signal<\/strong>, even if you are on the road.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\ud83d\udc49 Ignoring signals: Fine of <strong>6,000 yen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>4<\/strong><strong> \ud83d\udeb8 Can you use crosswalks?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>You may cross using a crosswalk<\/li><li>However, if pedestrians are present, do not interfere\u2014slow down or get off your bike if necessary<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><em>If a bicycle crossing lane is available, you must use it.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\ud83d\udc49 Violation: Fine of <strong>5,000 yen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>5<\/strong><strong> \ud83d\ude97 Where should you ride on the road?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Always ride on the <strong>left side of the road<\/strong><\/li><li>Riding on the right side is considered <strong>wrong-way riding<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>\ud83d\udc49 Violation: Fine of <strong>6,000 yen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>6<\/strong><strong>\ud83d\udeb2 Can you ride side by side?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Riding side by side is <strong>not allowed<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>\ud83d\udc49 Violation: Fine of <strong>3,000 yen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>7<\/strong><strong> \ud83c\udfa7 Can you wear headphones?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In Nagano Prefecture:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Riding while unable to hear surrounding sounds (wearing headphones) is <strong>prohibited<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>\ud83d\udc49 Violation: Fine of <strong>5,000 yen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>8\ud83d\udcf1 No smartphone use while riding!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Holding a phone to talk or look at the screen is illegal<br>\ud83d\udc49 Fine of <strong>12,000 yen<\/strong><\/li><li>If it causes danger or an accident:<br>\ud83d\udc49 Up to <strong>1 year imprisonment or a fine up to 300,000 yen<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>\u26a0\ufe0f This is one of the most serious bicycle violations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>9 \u26d1 Should you wear a helmet?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Helmet use is strongly recommended. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\ud83d\udc49 Wearing a helmet helps prevent serious injuries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Many people aren\u2019t sure about bicycle rules\u2014like whether it\u2019s okay to ride on the sidewalk or which traffic li [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1763,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","ub_ctt_via":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/2.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"\u56fd\u969b\u4ea4\u6d41\u30bb\u30f3\u30bf\u30fc","author_link":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/author\/ced620d04eb3ca9531749e6e9ca8472c37f89de0\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1760"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1760"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1760\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1764,"href":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1760\/revisions\/1764"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1763"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1760"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1760"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oiea.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1760"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}